Human Years
by Zeraphic Triomis
Summary: In human years, Red XIII would actually be around sixteen years old. So... what if he were to suddenly change into a human? (Chapter FINALE is up)
1. First Encounter

A/N: A three part story that has Nanaki as the main character! I say Red in here but… ah… same thing… ne? I like Nanaki though… heheh… I always wanted to write a story about him. :koosh:

Disclaimer: All the FF7 characters don't belong to me… nor do the places I will mention in here. :cough:

**Human Years**  
Part 1 

First Encounter

I couldn't sleep… not because Cid and Barret's loud snoring were keeping me up, but, because I had a strange feeling that something was going to happen. We were currently residing just outside of Cosmo Canyon. We came from Rocket Town, due to a certain 'Captain' that wanted to visit Shera just for the heck. I felt kind of bad. He was always yelling at the poor woman, and yet, she never seemed sad or scared by his loud yelling. She was tough… maybe even tougher than I thought. After what was supposed to be just a day of visiting, we headed towards my place to stock up on some items… a week later. But, I wanted to give a little "hello" to my grandfather, since I haven't seen him for like… maybe about a few months since we left.

I shook the irrelevant thoughts out of my mind and concentrated on reality. It was dark outside and we set up camp out in the middle of nowhere. Where we were vulnerable for any assaults. Yuffie was on guard duty for a couple of hours, then it was my turn… now that I mentioned it… I haven't seen her in a while.

Without making a sound, I slowly walked away from the sleeping group and took a quick glance around the meadow. No signs of Yuffie. Where could she be? I hope she wasn't planning anything sneaky… or even worse… what if she was in trouble?

A few moments later, screams echoed throughout the area, causing everyone to wake up from the sudden eerie noise.

"What the hell was that?" Cid grunted, sounding really groggy and pissed at the same time.

Completely ignoring what he just said, I growled and quickly ran towards the sound. When I stopped and thought about it… that scream sounded just like Yuffie.

No sooner that I completely left the group, I spotted Yuffie cornered by a gigantic dragon. I gasped then growled, attempting to scare off the monster. But, it just looked at me for a second then resumed to its prey. Yuffie took out her oversized shuriken and sliced its throat. It grunted and let out a poisonous fume that escaped from its open mouth. Without realizing the danger I could get into, I quickly went in and pushed Yuffie away, who was just standing there, completely frozen.

"Red!" she yelled and narrowed her eyes and threw several shurikens at the monster. It collapsed to the ground as green liquid oozed out.

My whole body felt numb and I could barely breathe. I guess that poisonous fume had the power to paralyze my whole body… including my lungs. My body flinched as Yuffie kept shaking me. I just wanted to yell and tell her to stop, but I couldn't. I felt weak.

"Red… don't….on me…. dog!"

Those were the only words I could make out before I completely blacked out.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

A zone of darkness… and I was the only one present in this… never-ending void. I had no idea if I was dead or alive. Quite hard to tell… my mind seemed to work but my body felt… nothing. I didn't feel anything. I tried calling out, but only grunts came out and it seemed to echo inside my ears, giving me this ultimate headache that seemed never ending.

A bright light shone over me, giving off this warm feeling that seemed to soothe my body. It felt really nice… I just wanted to stay in this spot forever. Before I realized, I was lifted off from the ground, heading straight for the light, giving off a very powerful energy that circulated throughout my body.

"Nnn…" I managed to say, before I disappeared inside the bright light.

But, this light… turned out to be something more than giving off such a nice feeling. My front and hind legs felt like they were going to crumble, and my face felt like I've been slapped for hundreds of times… and my heart felt like it stopped beating. I couldn't take the pain I was feeling anymore… I had… to escape…

My eye fluttered open. It took me a while to adjust to my surroundings until I realized I was inside my grandfather's room. I looked around then shifted to my belly, burying my head underneath the covers of the bed. I still felt kind of weak. Maybe a little bit more sleep.

The blinds of the window suddenly opened, giving off a bright light that even blinded me when I had my eyes closed. No… not that light again… I moaned to myself. Something patted my head and snickered. I opened my eye but I was too lazy to look at who was doing that, but, I knew only one person with that chuckle.

"… unn… grandpa?"

"Ho ho ho! That's right!"

"Close the windoooowww…" I whined in a child-like manner, but he just laughed it off and exited out of the room.

I grunted, telling myself that sometimes he can be such a pain in the butt. I shifted to my back and stretched, feeling a new sensation flow throughout my body when I did that. I rubbed my eye with my hand and yawned…. wait. I paused and looked at my hands. I… never had hands before.

I quickly sat up and took the covers off me, revealing… not a body of a beast… but a body of a human boy! I paused then yelled out loud, quickly grabbing the blanket and covering myself. Why… was I a human?

Cid's head popped up to my room as I quickly hid myself deep in the covers. I couldn't show anyone my present state. He walked over and grunted at me.

"So, you're finally up, huh? Geez. Took you long enough."

I remained silent. I was still shocked. He poked my back, making me move away from him. He growled and tried grabbing the blanket away from me, but I tugged back.

"Stop it, Cid!" I growled at him.

"Get up already! You're fine now!"

I panted loudly, realizing that my energy was quickly being drained from all the tugging. Finally giving up, I let go of the blanket, making Cid smile victoriously as he finally removed it from my body. He paused with his mouth wide open, making the cigarette fall out from his mouth. I stared back at him, embarrassed and shocked at the same time. He yelled really loudly and fell down the ladder.

"GAH! THERE'S A NAKED KID UP THERE!" he yelled to whoever was down there.

I slapped my head and felt my whole body warm up. I panted and covered the blanket over me, trying to hide myself from all the embarrassment. What… was going on?

* * *

A/N: End of Part 1! Ahhahaha… I dunno if a story like this has been done before, but I like stuff like this. Hehehe… anyways! I hope you enjoyed and please tell me how you thought of it! Also, look out for Part 2! 


	2. Realization

A/N: Man… this part went up fast, ne? I thought about this a couple of times… and, I guess this is where the "romance"-ish part comes up? Yeah, I didn't see this coming. :gasp: Such a shock… and I thought up the story. Is that like… normal? Hm…

Oh! And, thanks for reviewing! I have a lil… :narrows eyes: _extra_… at the end of this story. I don't normally do it, but maybe I should start… huh? Hehehe… eh.

Disclaimer: FF7 stuffs in the following story don't belong to me. Only the idea of the story does… because… eh… BECAUSE.

**Human Years**  
Part 2 

Realization

"Hmm… red-brownish hair, one eye and a tattoo on his left shoulder…" Grandfather gasped and shook me around rapidly, giving me headache. "ARE YOU SOME KIND OF COSPLAYER?"

I fell off the bed and grunted at his stupidity. How can my own grandfather _not_ recognize his own grandson? Well… besides the fact that I'm a human. After Cid practically went around the whole canyon looking for people to tell of a 'naked boy,' my grandfather obviously heard the racket and came rushing in. And, no matter how many times I've told him that I'm his grandson, he just wouldn't believe me.

I gave off a loud sigh before yelling in front of my grandpa, "I'm, RED! NANAKI! YOUR GRANDSON!"

"My goodness! Aren't you the frisky one? Now, have you seen… a lion-like creature lately?" My mouth practically dropped to the floor at that. Nothing… absolutely NOTHING was going to convince him that I was not a stranger. "He was supposed to be sleeping right in this bed," he added.

I frowned and looked away. "… no."

He sighed to himself and patted my head. "Okay, but, if you see him…"

"I'll tell you."

"Thanks. I'll leave you alone to dress."

As he slowly floated down the ladder, I could have sworn I heard him snicker. … wait a second. I looked at myself, paused, then quickly hid underneath the blanket. 'Damn! I forgot! I'm still naked!'

"Red?"

My head perked up, and I shifted to where the sound came from. Through the blanket, I can sort of see that it was Yuffie, holding what seemed to be shorts. She looked around and finally fixed her eyes upon me, suspecting that the big lump was supposedly, me, Red. She walked over and poked my head. I grunted.

"Look, I know your little situation. You don't need to hide it from anyone anymore."

As much as I hated to admit, she was right. Thanks to Cid, there was no point in hiding. I sighed then shook my head around until the sheets covering my head flew off. My eyes immediately made its way towards Yuffie, who just stood there with an amazed look on her face. I would be quite shocked if I saw something that looked out of the ordinary. The ninja then gave out a big smile and leaned towards me as I felt a hot blush spread across my face.

"Omigosh! Look at you! You look so cute!"

'… cute?' I repeated to myself. Did… I really look _that_ bad? But, I resisted the urge to actually look at myself in the mirror. I combed my hand through the smooth hair covering my right eye before responding, "How… did I become like this?"

Yuffie tilted her head. "It was from that monster's fume attack. It, apparently, caused your body to paralyze, and, somehow mess around with your DNA."

"… is that even possible?"

She shrugged.

I remained silent and took another good look at myself. Absolutely no fur, no sudden urges to scratch where it itches, and my breathing definitely seemed different from the way I used to breathe with my 'big nose.'

Yuffie patted my bare shoulder and smiled sweetly. "I'm sorry… it was my fault that you got into this situation." I looked at her with an apologetic look on my face. "I promise I won't do something like this." At that, she bowed her head and placed the pair of shorts on my bed before climbing down the ladder.

"…"

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Ho ho ho! I got you there, huh?"

I pouted and stopped myself from beating the stuffing out of the old man for playing such a rude joke on me. I was really worried that he would see me as a total stranger and not his own grandson! Sighing at his odd laughter, I sat up from the bed and decided to put on the pair of shorts Yuffie had brought me earlier. I was well aware of how bad I was with pants, but, I somehow figured out how to… 'zipper' them up.

I sighed once again and collapsed on the bed. "Grandpa? How long do you think I'll be stuck like this?"

"Hm… not quite sure. This is the first time I've ever seen such a thing."

"… in other words, forever, right?"

Grandpa patted my head and floated down the ladder. "I'll leave you alone for a while."

I stared at the wall for who knows how long? Several hours… or something? Everything was silent, giving off this eerie feeling I have never felt before. I guessed that everyone was outside in the fresh air having fun and frolicking with the locals. As much as I wanted to go out, I couldn't. What will everyone's reaction be? They'd probably stare at my… new body and give me weird looks. I never really enjoyed the comfort of people staring at me. I was mostly a… be-in-the-back kind of person.

Just then, Cloud and company made their way up to my room. I widened my eyes and backed away from them. W-Why the heck were they up _here_ for? Cloud leaned towards me and gave me a look.

"Wow… is that really you?"

I felt cold stares aim right towards me from all directions. I grabbed my head and brought my knees up to my chest. "D-Don't…"

"Hey! Bugen said that in human years, Red's actually sixteen, right? Heh. I can see that. You're like that little brat Yuffie!" Cid joked. Though, I took that seriously, but I didn't show my anger. I was too busy being embarrassed.

"Hey! Don't say that!" Yuffie hissed at the pilot who just laughed it off.

"Aw! You look so cute, Red!" Tifa snickered and patted my head. I shook her hand away and tightened my grip to my head.

"Whatcha' doin'? Don't tell me yer embarrassed!" Barret said, which suddenly brought a cold chill down my spine.

"Red," I peeked through my arms and spotted Vincent with a serious face on. "We're currently searching for a remedy to return to your normal self."

Before I could say or… mumble out anything, everyone headed out of the room, except for Yuffie who stayed and sat on my bed. I was still grabbing onto my head tightly with my eyes widened.

'N… normal… self? That means… I'm not… normal?'

"Alright, you!"

Yuffie pulled me up to my feet and pushed me towards the window, soon realizing what she was trying to do. I tightly closed my eyes, hoping her little plan would backfire. She was trying to make me look at my own reflection of my human self… which I had no desire to see whatsoever. I can tell from everyone's reaction and looks, that I… I was…

"Look at yourself," Yuffie said, cutting my thoughts short. I shook my head fast. She grunted and grasped onto my shoulders tightly. "Just look!"

"Stop, Yuffie! I know I look bad! So, it's pointless to even bother looking-"

"… AHH! IT'S SEPHIROTH IN THE SKY!"

"H-Huh!"

My eyes immediately opened and looked out the window… seeing nothing but the dark sky and my own reflection. I closed my eyes for a second… then slowly opened them, staring back at the young and, I have to admit, handsome figure before me. Messed up red-brownish hair that stopped just above my shoulder, tan colored skin painted all over my body… My hand brushed against the cold glass as the reflection copied.

"… is… that me?"

Yuffie happily nodded and tugged my hand. "Yep! So, there's no need to be embarrassed over something that's not true!"

"B-But…"

"Geez! This is so ironic! You're worried over a human body instead of that beast body!"

"… I'm not used to… being human."

"Well then!" She tugged me towards the ladder and pushed me down, making me land on the ground really hard. "It's time to learn a thing or two about being human!"

'W-Why do I get the feeling that… this will not be easy…?'

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"C'mon! You're so slow!"

"I'm trying!"

"Well, do it faster!"

"WHOA!"

I clumsily tripped over my own feet and tumbled right into Yuffie. We both fell to the bottom with a loud 'thud.' She grunted and pushed me off of her as she stood up and neatly brushed herself off. I slowly stood up and lost my balance and fell over again. I heard Yuffie sigh then snicker at that. Walking on two feet… was DEFINITELY harder to do than walking with four feet… might as well start using my hands too…

I lifted my head and shook it around. "What?" I growled, trying to get up without stupidly falling over again.

"Hehe… I'm sorry… it's just… seeing a teenager walk like that is just priceless."

I snorted and slowly walked towards her, carefully examining my feet closely. She smiled and clapped her hands with much enthusiasm. I couldn't help but smile at that, but that smiled soon faded as I stopped in my tracks.

"So… besides the walking, what else do I have to know about being 'human?'"

Yuffie paused then stared into my eyes. I guess… I would be kind of shocked hearing myself say that. But, I actually _was_ interested in learning more about being human. After all, it could be several days, or even months until I can return to my original body.

Yuffie smiled and hugged my arm, pulling me towards the Cosmo Candle. "Time for lesson two!"

Before I realized, we already made it to the Cosmo Candle, where all our friends were seen sitting and relaxing in front of the bright fire that burned brilliantly. Yuffie made her way past Cid and Barret… and I followed close behind. Cid tugged the back of shorts, causing me to fall right onto his lap.

"Hey, hey! You're finally out of the cave!" he joked.

"I have legs, you know," I grunted back at him and scrambled up to my feet.

"Betcha can't run any faster than when you had four!"

Ignoring his last rude comment, I brushed past him and sat down between Yuffie and Cloud. Now, I know how Yuffie feels when she's teased by Cid. I think he has a little issue with people that are younger than twenty years old. I sighed loudly, realizing that Cloud was nudging my arm back and forth.

"So," he started, whispering inside my ear, "how's the human life?"

"Ugh… harder than I thought. How can you humans possible live with only two feet?"

He chuckled softly and responded, "Don't worry about it. We'll find a remedy for you soon enough."

"Ooh! Look!" A quiet gasp escaped from my mouth as I quickly turned towards Yuffie who was staring up at the sky.

"What's wrong?" I said looking up.

She pointed up. "A shooting star!"

As I gazed through the various bright stars that were occupying the sky, I hadn't realized that Yuffie had been leaning on my arm. The sudden weight made me fall backwards, as her head was now resting on my stomach. A felt a slight blush escape onto my face as I blinked and jerked my head around, wondering if this was noticeable to anyone else. And… from their expressions, it was.

"Yuffie!" I hissed at her. "H-Hey! Wake up!"

"Aw! I should have brought a camera!" Tifa smiled as she tugged Cloud up to his feet. "Let's leave them alone for awhile, hm?"

She gestured for everyone else to leave Yuffie and me alone. My heart started racing as each of them stepped away from the Cosmo Candle.

"W-Wait a minute!" I tried calling out to them, but they ignored me as they made their way towards my grandfather's lab.

'Damn them!' I growled to myself. 'They should know I… don't know how…'

I stopped then looked down at the sleeping Yuffie. A smile formed on my face as I watched how innocent she looked when she was sleeping. I guess… I didn't really mind this at all… now that we were alone and no one else was looking…

"Hehehe…"

I widened my eyes and stared back down at the… now-awake Yuffie. She smiled at me brushed her hand gently on my neck.

"It's fun to tease you." I lifted an eyebrow at that as she started giggling uncontrollably. I rolled my eyes and turned away. "… why is your heart beating so fast for?" she continued.

I looked away and responded with a surprisingly shaky voice, "I-It's not! You're just-"

"… I'll leave."

I looked at her as she lifted herself off me, but, before she had a chance to stand up, I tugged her arm and bowed my head down, trying to hide the blush that formed on my face. I couldn't believe what I was doing, but, I would feel kind of guilty that her high spirited personality would be put down because of me. I peeked my head up and smiled slightly.

"Maybe… a few more minutes?"

* * *

_Extra_  
(That has nothing to do with the story whatsoever! Rah rah!)

_FF7 Blooper_

Barret: When we blow this place, this ain't gonna be nothin' more than a hunka junk. Cloud, you set the bomb.

Cloud: Should _you_ do it?

Barret: ARE YOU KIDDING ME! Last time I did that, my arm exploded right off!

Cloud: O.O

Director: CUT! Barret! What the CRAP are you saying! That's not in the script!

Barret: IT'S TRUE! Look what happened to my arm!

Director: MORON! YOU LOST THAT ARM 'CAUSE THE SHINRA SHOT IT OFF!

Barret: … they did?

Cloud: D-Do I… still have to set the bomb?

Director: Yes you do, Cloud.

Cloud: B-But...

Barret: Tee hee...

* * *

A/N: End of Part 2… and Extra! It was just a randomness blooper I thought of one day 'cause I was extremely bored. I found this in my folder today… and I was like, "Holy crap! I remember this!" So, I decided to share… one of them. :cough: Sorry. :dodges tomatoes: Anyways, I hope you enjoyed the chapter and extra… and please tell me how you thought of them! 


	3. Speak of What is True

A/N: Tis ze Chapter Finale! Already? Man… I have so much free time. :sniffs: I have this annoying cold… and it won't go away! Grrr… :sniffs: I'm all congesty... It's like... I D'OH BOB! (I know mom) Anyways! Hope you enjoy the final chapter!

And thanks for reviewing! I'm glad you enjoyed human Nanaki! Hehehe…

Disclaimer: FF7… blah blah blah doesn't belong to me!

**Human Years**  
Chapter Finale 

Speak of What Is True

Blood. It gushed out with such a powerful force that I could have sworn my body felt like it was about to collapse. The red liquid dripped down on a shadowy figure that I had pinned down. The figure wrapped its arms around my neck and slowly pulled itself up… slowly making contact to me… and then-

"Chug it dooowwnn!"

I shot open my eyes at the loud noise and fixed them upon Cid who had… a bottle stuck inside my mouth. I quickly stood up, took the out bottle and coughed out the bitter tasting liquid that made its way inside my mouth. I shook my head around and growled at Cid who seemed very amused at the moment. After taking a quick look at my surroundings, I was inside my grandfather's room with, obviously, Cid…Cloud, Barret and Vincent. I tilted my head, quite confused at the moment.

"What's going on?" I asked to whomever was willing to answer.

Cloud turned his head towards me and gave out a small smile. "We're finding a cure for you, Red." He turned back and resumed his work with Vincent.

"Oh," I looked at Cid who still had that evil smirk on his face. "I guess that potion didn't work on me."

He stared at me then laughed so hard, I could have sworn I saw a vein pop out from his head. "Ahaha! That was no potion! That was one of my sake I found on the Highwind the other day."

I stared at him for a second then collapsed back down on my bed. My stomach felt a little uneasy… now that he mentioned that bitter tasting beverage. I felt like I was going to barf…

"Hey," he continued, "I had to wake you up somehow!"

"Hey, hey!"

I perked my head up and quickly sat up from the bed as I saw Yuffie climbing up the ladder. I couldn't stop thinking about what happened last night. I kept wondering how I felt when I was around Yuffie. I never felt like that before when I wasn't human… so, why now? Was it some kind of… human thing that humans go through or something?

"Hellloooo!"

I blinked out of my dreamland and stared up at Yuffie who had her face shoved right in front of mine.

"What?" I said, making the girl sigh loudly.

"C'mon! We're going to play!" she said happily, tugging my arm in a child-like manner.

I remained in my one spot and looked at the busy working Cloud and Vincent, who didn't seem to notice any disturbances. I sighed, thinking that if I didn't go with Yuffie, someone would be quite upset. I don't know why, but I felt that… going with Yuffie was more important than any potion. I actually didn't feel like returning to my regular form just yet.

"Uhm…" I said to Vincent and Cloud, "Is it okay?"

"Don't go too far," Vincent pointed out. "We might head out later to search for that monster's fume. It's the only way we can cure you."

"Don't treat us like little kids!" Yuffie grunted and stuck her tongue at Vincent's back.

"Tch. Teens," Cid sighed, removing the cigarette from his mouth.

With an evil glare from the angered ninja, she dragged me off the bed and down the ladder, where I met Tifa spinning a white ball around on her lone finger. She smiled and threw the ball at me. I clumsily caught it and stared at it for a while before I looked up to Tifa.

"How about a little game of… dodgeball?"

I tilted my head and responded, "How do you play… dodge…ball?"

"You never heard of that?" exclaimed Yuffie with a surprised look on her face, "Just how it sounds. You try and dodge the ball, and when you get hit, you're out!"

"Sounds… painful."

"I'll go easy on you."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Hiiiiiiyah!"

"ACK!"

That was the tenth time Yuffie hit me… and in the same spot at that! A big bruise soon formed on my side and it seemed like it would be permanent. I growled and waved my arms around at the two laughing girls.

"Hey! You said you would go easy!"

"I am! You're just too sucky!" Yuffie laughed. "You dodge better in battles than in games!"

"That's because I wasn't human!" I whined.

"Sucky, sucky!"

"C'mon! You can do better than that!" Barret and Cid yelled in the back.

After they heard that we were going to play dodgeball, those two decided to come along and play with us. But, I bet they only came down here just to watch how clumsy I am being a human.

"You can't hit me!" the ninja teased, sticking her tongue out at me.

With the feeling of both anger and embarrassment, I lifted the ball off from the ground and concentrated on the two targets. All throughout the game, I hadn't been concentrating enough, but now I felt ready for anything. I brought the ball back, quickly stepped forward, and brought my arm out really fast, releasing the ball from my hand with amazing speed. It was headed straight for Yuffie, who gasped as the ball suddenly collided right on her face. I gasped as well and ran towards her, hoping she was all right.

"Yuffie! Are you alright?"

She rubbed her cheek that now had a big red bruise on it, then threw the ball right into the side I had the bruise on. I moaned and quickly grabbed my it that was now in excruciating pain, then looked at Yuffie who had quite the angry look on her face.

"Yuffie…" Tifa whispered as she backed away from the ninja.

"Damnit! That hurt!" Yuffie said very angrily.

"_That_ hurt? How about the fact that you keep hitting me in the same spot!"

"That's because you don't know how to protect yourself!"

"Well, you said that you were going to go easy on me! But, like the same untrustworthy ninja I know, I knew it was too good to be true!"

That seemed to steam Yuffie up in a way I have never seen her. She stomped her foot hard on the ground and made a fist right in front of my face.

"HEY! If you don't trust me, then why do you keep hanging around me!"

"You're the one who keeps dragging me all over the place!"

"That's because if I didn't, then you'd be sittin' around in that small room feeling so stupid about yourself! Who does that!"

I widened my eyes and slowly backed away from her, our eyes still fixed upon each other's. She… was absolutely right.

"… I'm sorry," I finally said as I patted the bruise that was now gushing out blood.

"If it's ONLY for the bruise on my cheek, th-"

"Not only that…"

Yuffie lifted her eyebrows, now in full attention of what I'm about to say.

"It was stupid of me to feel that I was different from everyone else. But, you have to remember… I'm not used to being human. It was so unexpected… and it's still shocking to-"

A hard slap across my face stopped me from continuing. I fell backwards and looked up at Yuffie, who had tears dripping down her cheeks. She punched in the air before stomping her foot hard on the ground once again.

"MORON! Did you think I was taking you everywhere only because I showed sympathy to you? I did, but didn't you learn _anything_ at all? I was trying to get you out of that 'feeling stupid' and 'awkward' stage and make you have fun with everyone else! But… I guess I was wrong. You only thought I did this just so I could embarrass you…"

Yuffie backed away from me before yelling out, "THAT'S NOT TRUE!" And at that, she ran past Tifa, who was shocked at the moment, and ran out of Cosmo Canyon. I stared until her figure disappeared.

'… that's not… true…'

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"We need to search for that fume in order to finish this remedy."

"…"

I wasn't in the mood to pay attention to what Vincent had to say, even though it was important. I clenched the bandage around my side tightly, as the pain slowly began to surface once again.

"Nanaki?"

I looked up at my grandfather's voice. He seemed quite concerned when he said my name.

"Is something bothering you?" he asked.

"…"

"He's probably thinking about how Yuffie just snapped at him like that!" Cid blurted out, not realizing what he just said. I clenched my fists at that.

"I don't know what got her so worked up…" Tifa added. "Red?"

"…"

"Look, I don't know what happened, but can we concentrate on important matters?" Cloud said, trying to change the subject.

"FINDING A POTION FOR ME IS NOT IMPORTANT!" I snapped, practically pounding my fists hard on the table, making everything shake. I couldn't believe what I was hearing from them. "I'm going to look for Yuffie!"

At that, I jumped down from the room and headed straight for the exit of Cosmo Canyon, thinking of nothing but Yuffie.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

It felt like I had been walking around in circles. Everything seemed different, now that I saw things in a new perspective. I looked to where Yuffie might hide, but, being the clever ninja she was, she obviously made it seem like she was hiding where I thought she would be. I called out her name several times and I recieved no response. She was probably still mad about what I said about her… how she was an untrusting person. I shouldn't have said that… because it's not true. Her little habit of tricking people diminished a long time ago. I don't know what gave me the idea of her going back to that habit. After all… she was just trying to help me.

Just then, the ground started shaking with so much force, I couldn't even sit up as I fell hard on the ground. Two gigantic dragons that Yuffie and I encountered before had emerged through the cracks of the ground, but, they seemed bigger than last time. I guess… the last dragon we fought with… was not even full grown!

I quickly jumped away from their swinging tails and made my way down the mountain as the dragons followed close behind. As I made my way down the very steep mountain, I tripped over a rock and almost landed on my wound. I quickly lifted myself up and I spotted one of the dragons letting out the poisonous fume that made me turn into human. Quickly picking up a big rock, I stood up and threw it with such a powerful force that it completely knocked the dragon out. I quickly found a cave near the bottom of the mountain and made my way through. Luckily, the cave was small so the dragons couldn't make it through the entrance.

I panted hard, "… I thank whoever invented dodgeball…"

All was quiet in the cave as I made my way to the deepest end… with nothing but the thought of Yuffie stuck in my head. For all I could know, she could still be outside with those dragons.

"Yuffie…"

"What?"

I jumped back at the voice. After looking around for a few seconds, I finally noticed Yuffie sitting across from me on a small boulder, with tears streaming down her face. I stared back at her in shock.

"Yuffie! What're you doing here?"

"_Me_? What about _you_!"

I frowned at that. "… Yuffie…"

"… what? Did you only come here just so you can get that stupid fume from those dragons and finish the cure?"

"Yuffie… you know it's not that."

"… go away."

I paused before narrowing my eyes at her. "No."

"Fine," she replied, making her way out of the cave. "I'll leave then."

I growled and pulled her arm back. "No! I have to tell you something!"

"I don't need to hear it from you again!"

"Yuffie! Just listen!"

"…"

"I know I should have said this earlier…"

Without realizing, I stepped forward and wrapped my arms around Yuffie's waist and rested my cheek against her bare shoulder.

"Thank you."

"W-What're you doing! Let go!"

"You were the only one that even cared about my feelings. You helped me all this time. Why did you do it?"

She remained silent.

"Did you do it… just so you can pay me back from before? Or…"

"No," she finally said, turning around to face me. "I did it because it doesn't matter how you look on the outside… only in the inside. You're still the same ol' four legged dog I knew a long time ago!"

'… dog…' I said to myself.

"You're my friend… and friends look out for each other, right?"

"… yeah."

I looked away from Yuffie for a second then gasped, noticing that there was a gray gas present inside the cave. It was the same exact gas from last time. I quickly pinned Yuffie straight for the ground, covering her with my body to protect her from the gas.

"What the-!" Yuffie yelled.

I moaned as the gas completely covered my body. And like what happened before, my body felt like it was going to tear into pieces. I grabbed my sides really tightly, not realizing that I reopened my bruise with so much force, that blood gushed out quickly.

Yuffie gasped as she stared up at the pained look on my face.

"R-Red!" she cried out as blood dripped on her face.

"D-Don't worry about me! Just stay down!"

"B-But!"

I bowed my head and coughed a few times before I managed to say, "… you… taught me a lot… Yuffie. I should have realized what you were trying to do sooner…"

"… Red…"

"… thank… you…"

I almost collapsed right on top of Yuffie, but I managed to prevent myself from doing so. The pain that was flowing throughout my body felt stronger than before. I panted a lot, not realizing that Yuffie had her arms behind my neck. She slowly lifted herself up and gently pressed her soft lips against mine. My body began to warm up as I unconsciously wrapped my arms around Yuffie and pushed her towards me, deeping our very first kiss.

After that moment… total darkness…

"… you're welcome…" was all I heard.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

It had been several months since the little event with Yuffie. After I woke up a week later, I was back to normal. That is… NORMAL normal. Vincent's remedy had returned me to my normal body and it had cured me from my injuries as well. Walking with my four feet took time to get used to… I almost walked with my hind legs the minute I got out of my bed. But, luckily my grandfather said I didn't have to do that… unless I wanted to. Obviously… not. 

As for Yuffie and myself, our bond had grown deeply. However, our feelings for each other had changed for those months… and we see each other as loving friends. Perhaps, everything had just been an accident… and we weren't meant to be with each other. I don't know what will happen to our relationship as time passes by, but as long as I know she's all right… I'll continue to love her as a friend and protect her… wherever she may be.

* * *

A/N: End of Chapter Finale! Whoo! My firstest… more-than-one-chapter-story I have ever finished! And a romantic-ishy story at that! Aw, I really liked writing this… maybe I'll do a sequel to it or something. Hm. Who knows? You think I should? Hm… anyways! I hope you enjoyed the final chapter, and please tell me how you thought of it! Oh yeah… sorry, no extras. :dodges flying tomatoes: 


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